The list of independent presidential candidates who filed slates of presidential elector candidates in Rhode Island is: Ralph Nader, Denise McSheffrey, and Yonyuth Hongsakaphadana. These candidates now need at least 1,000 valid signatures, due September 5.

The list of unqualified parties that filed slates of presidential elector candidates in Rhode Island is (as reported yesterday): Constitution, Green, Libertarian, Socialism, Socialist, and Socialist Workers. They also each need 1,000 signatures by September 5. Any adult may circulate petitions in Rhode Island.

If all 9 petitioning candidates and groups succeed, there will be eleven presidential candidates on the Rhode Island November ballot, the most that state has ever had. The previous largest ballot Rhode Island ever had was in 2000, when 10 presidential candidates were listed.

For U.S. Senate, there are no minor party or independent candidates. For US House district 1, one independent filed; he needs 500 signatures by mid-July. For US House district 2, one Green filed; he also needs 500 signatures next month.

The Washington Post has this lengthy article about Ralph Nader in its June 25 issue. Unfortunately, the article is mostly a re-hash of all the same points that have been written about Nader for years. There is no mention that the Post itself presented evidence in its October 22, 2004 issue, page one, that Nader was not injuring the Democratic presidential campaign in 2004. There is no mention that he is doing better with ballot access in 2008 than he was doing at this point in 2004. There is no mention that he seems likely to be the only non-major party presidential candidate who will receive primary season matching funds (unless Cynthia McKinney also qualifies). There is no mention of Nader’s very strong FEC complaint against the Democratic National Committee. That complaint charges that the Committee should have reported its extensive expenditures to keep him off the ballot in 2004 but did not do so.

Utah held its primary (for office other than president) on June 24. Jason Chaffetz defeated incumbent Chris Cannon in the Republican primary, for the U.S. House, 3rd district. Chaffetz had been criticized during the campaign because he doesn’t live in the 3rd district. The U.S. Constitution forbids states from requiring candidates for the U.S. House to live in any particular district. However, it is considered unwise (for public relations reasons) for candidates to run in districts, if they don’t live in that district.

Chaffetz lives two miles from the boundary of the 3rd district. The 3rd district is centered on Provo, plus the southern suburbs of Salt Lake City, and is an overwhelmingly Republican district. Chaffetz lives in Alpine, which is in Utah County. Although most of Utah County is in the 3rd district, a small part of that county, including the city of Alpine, is in the 2nd district. Thanks to Rob Latham for this news.